The Writing Instrument Manufacturers Association (WIMA) established today as National Handwriting Day back in 1977, in order to celebrate John Hancock's birthday (who was born on January 12th, so go figure,) one of our Founding Fathers, as well as the first signer of the U.S. Declaration of Independence. Most people who were around then were taught penmanship as children, but that may no longer be the case for younger generations.
In most schools today, greater emphasis is placed on typing and computer technologies. Cursive is disappearing from the curriculum; many young people today learn only enough to sign their name - if they learn any cursive at all.
Remember, celebrate responsibly - practice your penmanship.
January 23, 1948 -
John Huston's classic film, Treasure of Sierra Madre, starring Humphrey Bogart, Walter Huston and Tim Holt opens in NYC on this date.
In his Oscar acceptance speech, Walter Huston said, "Many, many years ago, I brought up a boy and I said to him, 'Son, if you ever become a writer, try to write a good part for your old man sometime'. Well, by cracky, that's what he did!"
January 23, 1962 -
François Truffaut's adaptation of the Henri-Pierre Roché novel, Jules et Jim, starring Jeanne Moreau, Oskar Werner, and Henri Serre was released in France, on this date.
One of the earliest foreign films to be distributed in the US by two Harvard students, Cyrus Harvey and Brian Halliday, under their newly formed company, Janus Films. Janus went on to distribute all sorts of classic foreign films and is now owned by Criterion.
January 23, 1965 -
Petula Clark's song Downtown, hit No. #1 on the Billboard Charts on this date.
A British songwriter and producer named Tony Hatch wrote this. During the '60s, he wrote most of Clark's material, including her follow-up hit, I Know a Place (which also deals with city life). Hatch was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2013. (Bunkies, she's still alive and kicking.)
January 23, 1969 -
Elvis Presley recorded the song Suspicious Minds at American Sound, a small studio in Memphis, on this date.
The song is a huge comeback hit for Elvis, (it was seven years since his last #1 hit,) and gives him his last #1 in America.
January 23, 1975 -
Barney Miller, a TV series set in a New York City police station in Greenwich Village, premiered on ABC-TV on this date.
The producers were approached during the run of the series about doing a feature film based on the show using the regular cast members. The film was never made.
January 23, 1977 -
The twelve-hour miniseries Roots premiered on ABC-TV on this date.
The show was programmed by ABC to air on several consecutive nights in prime time. It was considered a revolutionary approach to programming a mini-series, since most minis were aired once or twice a week over several weeks' time. It was revealed years later that the reason the network did this was so that they get the show "out of the way" in a hurry because they felt, nobody would watch the story if it aired over a longer period of time.
January 23, 1983 -
The A-Team starring George Peppard, Dirk Benedict and Mr. T premiered on NBC-TV on this date.
Three cast members have prior US military experience: George Peppard served in the Marines, Eddie Velez served in the Air Force, and Mr. T was an MP in the Army.
January 23, 1991 -
NBC-TV aired the first regularly scheduled episode of the series Seinfeld, The Ex-Girlfriend, on this date.
Larry David famously instituted a policy of "no hugging, no learning", meaning that the show must avoid sentimentality and moral lessons, and the characters must never learn nor grow from their wrongdoings.
January 23, 2003 -
The pilot episode of Mythbusters premiered on The Discovery Channel on this date.
Jamie Hyneman and Adam Savage are known for not being friends off-set. Savage has admitted this freely, but stresses that the two of them got along well enough professionally (it was Jamie Hyneman who recommended Adam Savage as co-host in the first place) but make no effort to engage socially. He attributes this to clashing personalities rather than full-blown dislike.
Today's moment of Zen
Today in History:
January 23, 1849 -
The idea of winning a doctor's degree gradually assumed the aspect of a great moral struggle, and the moral fight possessed immense attraction for me.
English-born Elizabeth Blackwell, becomes the first woman to receive an American medical degree, graduated at the top of her class from the medical school of Hobart College, Geneva, NY on this date.
January 23, 1870 -
One of the worse slaughters of Native American by U.S. troops occurred on this date. The Incident has become known as the Marias Massacre. While the U.S. Cavalry was looking for a band of hostile Blackfoot Indians led by Mountain Chief, they stumbled instead, onto a peaceable band of Piegan Indians led by Chief Heavy Runner and killed about 200 tribes people, many of them women and children.
140 others were captured, later to be turned loose without horses, adequate food, and clothing. As the refugees made their way to Fort Benton, Montana, some ninety miles away, many of them froze to death. In the meantime Mountain Chief and his people had escaped across the border into Canada.
Another proud day for the American military
January 23, 1897 -
Elva Zona Heaster was found dead in Greenbrier County, West Virginia on this date. Authorities originally thought Heaster had died of natural causes, but her mother later claimed that Elva's ghost visited her and told her otherwise, leading to her widowed husband's arrest and conviction.
It was one of the few times in American legal history that the testimony of a ghost was taken into account at trial.
January 23, 1909 -
RMS Republic, a passenger ship of the White Star Line, collided with another ship, the SS Florida, off the Massachusetts coastline, an event that killed six people, on this date. The ship was equipped with a new Marconi wireless telegraphy transmitter, and issued a CQD distress call, resulting in the saving of around 1,500 lives.
Known as the "Millionaires' Ship" because of the number of wealthy Americans who traveled by her, she was described as a "palatial liner" and was the flagship of White Star Line's Boston service. This was the first important marine rescue made possible by radio, and brought worldwide attention to this new technology.
January 23, 1931 -
While touring in the Netherlands, the prima ballerina Anna Pavlova's train had a slight accident, derailing and being delayed for 12 hours. She went outside dressed only in pajamas and a light scarf to see what was happening. As a result of this she caught a cold, which developed into pneumonia.
She died three weeks later on this date. At the end, she asked to hold her Dying Swan costume. Her last words were, "Play that last measure very softly."
So kids, once again, your mother was right - when it's cold outside, put on a sweater.
January 23, 1978 -
Terry Kath of band Chicago accidentally killed himself on this date while pretending to play Russian Roulette in Woodland Hills.
Kaith's last words were 'Don't worry, it's not loaded.' The circumstances of his death gave him the dubious distinction of being one of the first celebrities to be nominated for a Darwin Award.
Moral: Remember guns don't kill - however one bullet in the chamber is a killer.
And so it goes
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